Navy's Tugade takes a run at Rio for Guam

Regine Tugade, (center) Navy freshman who will be competing in the Rio Olympic Games for Guam as a sprinter. - Original Credit:

Regine Tugade, (center) Navy freshman who will be competing in the Rio Olympic Games for Guam as a sprinter. - Original Credit: (Courtesy Photo / HANDOUT)

John P. Evans IIIjoevans@capgaznews.com

Many of Regine Tugade's fellow Navy Plebes must be envious of her.

Beginning next week, and for about a week thereafter, she will be excused from the excruciating Plebe Summer, the six-week training session required of all incoming freshmen at the Naval Academy — a program designed to introduce civilians to the rigors of military life.

Tugade, who has been participating in the plebe exercises since June 30, is getting a weeklong "pass" beginning Aug. 2 to participate in the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

She will be competing in the 100-meter dash representing the island country of Guam, a U.S. dependent in the Asian Pacific region.

Making Tugade's Olympic story even more intriguing is that she is a full-blooded Filipino though she was born and raised in Guam.

"My mother and father are both Filipinos, who emigrated from the Philippines to Guam," explained Tugade, who first set foot in the Continental U.S. for the first time in June 29.

"You might say she's like her own little United Nations of running," said Carla Criste, Tugade's Naval Academy track coach, who recruited Tugade for her sprinting skills.

"She holds numerous running records in Guam and she has connections to several different countries and has competed internationally for her home country, Guam," added Criste.

Tugade is representing Guam as one of only five members on its entire Olympics contingent. Though her time in the 100 meters (12.26 seconds) did not meet the international Olympic qualifying time, she landed a spot on the team as one of the Guam National Olympic Committee's universality picks — through an IOC rule that allows small countries to send athletes who don't normally qualify to the Olympics under special circumstances.

A standout track and field star in Guam, Tugade went undefeated in the 100 meters in her senior year of high school, setting personal bests along the way. She also holds the country's top times in the 100, 200 and 400 meters, and has the best mark in the long and triple jumps, as well.

Prior to arriving in Annapolis for the start of Plebe Summer, Tugade had never seen in person nor set foot on the Naval Academy grounds.

"I made my decision to attend the academy sight unseen," said Tugade, 18. "I was impressed with what I was told and shown (in pictures) when she (Criste) recruited me.

Five questions and five answers about the opening spectacle for the 2016 Summer Olympics. (Tim Bannon/Chicago Tribune)

Five questions and five answers about the opening spectacle for the 2016 Summer Olympics. (Tim Bannon/Chicago Tribune)

"I really wanted to continue track in a good program and at the Division I level, and attend a school with a really good academic program," Tugade added. "The honor and responsibility that came with being in the Navy also appealed to me."

Criste said recruiting Tugade presented obstacles, but they managed to stay in touch with her enough to keep communications going.

"We talked on the phone a few times, there's a 14-hour time difference so that had to be overcome, but we found her to be a fantastic young lady. We feel she will fit in perfectly at the Naval Academy," Criste said.

Tugade's versatility as a sprinter and a jumper is what drew Criste to Tugade. She is competitive in three sprints — the 100, 200 and 400 meters — and in the long jump and triple jump.

"As a track athlete, the fact that she excels in so many events is a drawing factor because in college she can compete in many different individual and relay events, as well as in the field events," Criste said.

Tugade said 2016 has been an "amazing" year with so many life-changing events taking place.

"To have such a great senior season and to get the chance to compete internationally, to get an opportunity to attend the Naval Academy, then to be selected to compete in the Olympics. It's just incredible," said Tugade, who will resume her plebe year following the Olympics.

Courtesy Photo / HANDOUT

Navy freshman Regine Tugade will be competing in the Rio Olympic Games for Guam as a sprinter.

Navy freshman Regine Tugade will be competing in the Rio Olympic Games for Guam as a sprinter.

(Courtesy Photo / HANDOUT)

"Ever since I first started track and field (at age 12), since I found out I was good at it, I've wanted to go to the Olympics. To have it become a reality as soon as now is amazing," she said.

Tugade joins 800-meter runner Josh Ilustre in Team Guam's athletics contingent, the only two track stars selected. Two of the other three team slots are filled by swimmers and the fifth is a male mountain biker.

"She shouldn't be difficult to pick out in the Olympic parade, maybe she'll get to carry her country's flag," joked Criste, who added that she looked forward to Tugade's next four years, witnessing her growth and the possibility of her return to the Olympics in 2020.

"What an opportunity this is for a young lady age 18 and just coming out of high school to be able to travel the world," Criste said. "In another four years, she will probably be representing Guam in another Olympics."

The Rio Olympics run Aug. 5-21. While her Guam teammates have already arrived in Rio, she came to the U.S. instead, so that she could fulfill her Plebe Summer commitment.

"Plebe Summer is very rigorous and requires that you be in prime physical condition," said Criste.

The rigors of Plebe Summer won't necessarily aid Tugade's preparation for the Olympics.

"She's doing both actually, going through her Plebe Summer (workouts), and training for the Olympics, which is a different workout all together," said Criste.

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Though Tugade's time in the 100 meters did not meet Olympic qualifying standards, she competed in the 2015 World Youth Championships in China as well as several other international events. The international experience influenced her country's decision to give her a coveted spot on its Olympic Team. Tugade had also qualified for the youth world games this summer, but her academy schedule and participation in Plebe Summer prevented her from competing.

In the Olympics, Tugade said she'll be representing Guam first, her Filipino heritage next, and then competing in spirit for her new country, the United States, and her new school, the Naval Academy.

Regarding her academy ties, Tugade is the first Navy plebe to compete in the Olympics

"It's an honor to have ties to so many countries and cultures and in some way represent each one," Tugade said. "It's not something I take lightly."

CYCLING: Former Navy gymnast Dr. Peter Lombard, a 1998 graduate of the academy, also will be a representative for Guam in the Summer Olympics. Lombard, a four-year letterwinner for the Midshipmen during the 1995 through 1998 seasons has used his athletic prowess to transition his sporting career into the world of competitive cycling, specifically the mountain bike genre. After finishing high enough in the UCI Oceania Mountain Bike Cross Country Championships this past March, Lombard earned his way to Rio.

The current road and mountain bike national champion, Lombard was born in Guam before coming to the United States and studying at the Naval Academy beginning in the fall of 1994. The valedictorian of the Class of 1998, he was a leader for Navy's gymnastics team. The team captain during his senior season, Lombard sustained a 4.0 GPA and earned CoSIDA First Team Academic All-American honors in 1998.

Since graduating from the Naval Academy and fulfilling his military obligation, he studied medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine where he specialized in ophthalmology. Dr. Lombard currently owns and operates Lombard Health Eye Clinic in Sinajana, Guam.

His journey in cycling started over 15 years ago with an initial interest in amateur triathlons. His abilities on a bicycle increased to the point that he won the 2016 Guam National MTB Championship in February.